Coconut & Key Lime Curd Layer Cake for Clandestine Cake Club

So we all know of my love for coconut - it's widely documented on here! I love how it pairs so fantastically with so many flavours but out of all the combos you get lime and coconut has to be my all time fave! I was, of course, trying to think of ways to use up the rest of my Key Lime juice and I had remembered seeing a few recipes for lime curd recently that had piqued my interest so the idea of Key Lime curd was born! 

and to accompany it I whipped up a lime and coconut flavoured cake too! 

I'm not the biggest fan of lemon curd, it's okay but I would never go out of my way to buy it.  So there I was thinking curd wasn't really for me.  Until I made my first batch of Key Lime curd which is out of this world amazing...I haven't looked back since, I'm already planning raspberry curd, passion fruit curd and you guessed it coconut curd! The sky is the limit! Seriously...you need this Key Lime curd in your life! It is SO good! and oh man, it made this cake my all time favourite layer cake.  The curd between each layer of cake helped to keep it super moist and it just paired with the creamy coconut frosting so beautifully! 

I can seriously see lots more of these cakes in my future because it was just so deliciously tasty that I've been craving it ever since I finished off the last slice a few weeks back! I urge all of you, who are after a light and refreshingly tasty cake to give this one a whirl - you won't regret it! 

and yes - for all those of you super observant bloggers out there, I did purposely co-ordinate my green polka dot ribbon with my lime green bake! My obsessiveness is not limited to coconut, but extends to colour co-ordination too! 

Coconut & Key Lime Curd Layer Cake with Coconut & Lime Cream Cheese Frosting:

Adapted from Land O'Lakes

Coconut & Lime Cake:

3 cups plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda

1 cup caster sugar

1 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 cup cream of coconut

2 tsp freshly grated lime zest

4 large eggs

1 cup coconut yoghurt

Key Lime Curd:

From The Craving Chronicles

1 1/2 cups caster sugar

zest of 4 limes

1 cup Key Lime juice

4 large eggs

8 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into tablespoon sized pieces

Coconut & Lime Cream Cheese Frosting:

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

1/4 cup cream of coconut

85g cream cheese, softened

1 tsp freshly grated lime zest

5 cups icing sugar

4-5 tbsp double cream

Make the Key Lime curd one day before you make the cake.  Add all ingredients, except butter, to a saucepan over low heat.  Whisk to combine.  Add butter.  Continue whisking gently but constantly, heating slowly, until curd thickens and reaches 160°F on a sugar thermometer.  Remove from heat.  For the smoothest curd, pour through a fine mesh strainer (I didn't do this because I wanted larger bits of zest in mine).  Transfer to a bowl, cover and refrigerate over night.  (It will keep for up to 1 week in the fridge).

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C.  Grease 2 round 9 inch cake pans; set aside.

Combine the flour, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda in a medium bowl and set aside.  

Beat butter and sugar in a freestanding electric mixer on medium speed until well mixed.  Add the cream of coconut and lime zest; continue beating, scraping bowl often, until smooth.  Add 1 egg at a time, beating well after each addition.  Reduce speed to low; add flour mixture alternately with coconut yoghurt.  Beat until well mixed.

Divide batter evenly between prepared pans.  Bake for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean and cake is a deep golden brown.  Cool in pans for 10 minutes.  Remove from pans and cool on wire racks.  

For the frosting: beat butter, cream of coconut, cream cheese and lime zest in the bowl of a freestanding electric mixer.  Beat at medium speed until creamy.  Reduce speed to low; add icing sugar, one cup at a time.  Add enough cream until it is at spreadable consistency.  

To assemble:

Cut off the domes on top of each cake so that they are flat.  

Using a cake slicer, slice each cake in half so that you are left with 4 cake rounds.

Place a layer of Key Lime curd in between each layer of cake.  Apply a thin crumb coat of cream cheese frosting all over the cake and place it in the fridge for about 30 minutes.  

Once it is firm, take it out and cover the cake in the rest of the frosting.  Using a palette knife, and turning it in opposite directions, make swirls in the frosting around the side of the cake.  

Using a cake smoother, smooth out the top and cover the top in shredded coconut.  

Cut a single slice of lime and twist it to adorn the top of the cake.

So off I went to my first (and sadly last since I've left Wales now) Clandestine Cake Club! 

It was hosted by the very lovely Katie who had opted for a Queen's Jubilee Tea theme.  Our cakes themselves didn't have to be representative of the Jubilee, they just had to be pretty, luxurious and something the Queen would enjoy eating! 

Although Katie went all out with the theme and even decorated her Black Forest Cherry Cake with cardboard cutouts of some Guards, The Queen and even Prince Philip! Very royal indeed! 

Christine made a classic victoria sponge covered in lashings of cream and strawberries.

Jane made a ginger cake covered in candied kumquats.  This was a nice pairing, and my first time trying kumquats - they were pretty tasty! 

Tracey's cake had to be my favourite of the night! because surprise suprise it involved coconut! It was a coconut cake, sandwiched with jam and buttercream and it was very delicious! 

Here's a shot of our spread, complete with Jubilee serviettes and everything! A super fun night was had by all and I'm hoping to start up a Clandestine Cake Club when we move to Vancouver!